To ask you to explain SEND funding and bankrupt councils to me?

[Myanna]

I've read a few articles like this one:

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/feb/05/send-costs-bankrupt-english-local-authorities

But I don't understand why the cost of funding SEND is so high that it's going to potentially/actually make most councils insolvent.

It's not like provision is generous or easy to get, from what I've read (I don't have a child who is supported).

Were these kids previously just not supported in any way by the state and was it left to families to cope as best they could?
Are these kids who previously wouldn't have survived, but now do because of better medical care and therefore need a lot of help?
Is this private equity running enterprises and charging huge amounts to local authorities?
Is it just inflation and the cost of employing people?

I really don't know much about this at all but I'm sure many on here do, so I'd really welcome your knowledge.

It really is. That post made no mention of expense. Merely that some children don’t need an education. All children need an education. It doesn’t matter if they have a life-limiting &/or life-threatening illness. It doesn’t matter if they will be independent or not. They still need an education. It isn’t about everyone being able to do everything. It isn’t about fairness. You misunderstand the scope of education if you think it is only traditional subjects like maths and languages. It is about far, far more than that.

Just nipped off for a few hours to drive an autistic kid round in circles and try to get him to have a bath… I can see we’re still on with how unworthy and expensive they are.

Good to see the chat hasn’t moved on, I don’t think we’ve quite covered that yet!

Tim Stoppard said ...Because children grow up, we think a child's purpose is to grow up. But a child's purpose is to be a child. Nature doesn't disdain what lives only for a day. It pours the whole of itself into the each moment. We don't value the lily less for not being made of flint and built to last.

Its on the wall in the classroom I use to run a morning club.

So what should happen to the children with profound learning disabilities - the ones who ‘don’t know what’s going on’? You know you’re talking about actual human beings, yes? My sister (now an adult) is one of them and if she hadn’t been able to attend a fantastic special school god only knows what would have happened to her or my parents. As long as no one has to cough up a few extra pence in taxes who cares though, right?

There’s ’cough up an extra few pence’ then there’s imposing yet more tax rises on the public to pay for another rise in SEN spending when it’s been rising for years and is spiralling out of control.

They don’t want to pay more for it, and that is not selfish.

Not in one of those " Free cars" i hope?

It doesnt matter wether they want to pay it or not nobody gets a choice on what their tax gets spent on.

No but we get a choice in who we elect and the next government will be Reform. Who want to decimate SEN.

Parents of disabled children don't need to be told that life is unfair.

Don't we fucking know it.

Some people are still not understanding that replacing education provision with care provision isn't cheaper.

I'm hoping my daughter's very expensive setting will continue providing her the therapeutic, cognitive and SALT support that enables her to have a productive future. Her school has enough adults on site during the day that every child could have 1:1 at the same time and some spare adults for back up. It also has enough rooms that every child can be separated. For instance, my daughter's class of 4 a couple of weeks back had one boy escalate and a second feed off him. 4 adults came to support those two. Two further adults came and took my DD and the other child out for a break 1:1 while the situation was sorted out and so they weren't heightened as the kids tend to go like dominoes if they aren't careful.

She gets really good therapeutic support in an environment she can engage in.

The most expensive provisions generally aren't the profoundly learning or physically disabled. They usually are well supported in maintained/non maitained settings.

The super expensive provisions are those those with significant SEMH needs or those who are academically capable but need SEMH support.

I've worked with a child who ended up in a 300k a year placement. 400 miles from home. Joint funded by social care and education. It was a secure unit and child was raising a lot of red flags of very very high risk behaviour towards others. You don't end up with that sort of placement unless you absolutely have to.

Did it work? I need tips.

Imagine 😂

No, we don’t get a free car. We do however get a blue badge, which I happily use when I take him to play areas to wind up other parents.

Errrm, if you ask us, he’s clean.

If you ask my bathroom floor, every towel in the house, and someone 7 streets away who heard the bath bellowing, not so successful!

Life is not a level playing field.

Give me fucking strength. I’ll worry about the terrain of the playing field when we get up at 2am.

I had a bit of success with soap dodger ASD child with some of the magic potion sets from Not on the High Street. They're actually made of soap flakes mostly. Who doesn't love turquoise bath water eh?!

Why are there suddenly so many children needing expensive SEMH places? This was incredibly rare when I was at secondary in the early 2000s. If you went to SEN school it was because you were disabled - Downs Syndrome, or blind, or in a wheelchair.

We have a " Free car" its a good scheme
Because my son gets it under SMI we dont need any adaptions ,and we are on our second car now and haven't had to pay a deposit
It does mean our choice is fairly limited but thats ok with us
Not that im trying to sell it to you 🤣

I imagine that I'll be doing the same at 2am.

Probably 4am too and definitely at 6am. Maybe 3am if I'm super lucky.

It doesn't say that in thier 'manifesto'
It says they want to double the number of PRUs which are generally expensive and makes no mention of sen at all really.

Exactly this. If people can’t get behind Labour pruning DLA then they are opening the door for Reform to come in with a sledgehammer.

DS1’s ‘free vehicle’ cost us over £15k. If it should be free, where is my refund?

Tesco sell a foam soap, it’s £1 something in a blue squirty bottle. Ours calls it “WOCKETTTTTT” and whilst it does turn the whole bathroom blue, he will accept it sprayed all over him.

Are Labour pruning DLA? I've heard about possible changes to PIP but not a peep about DLA.

We had our wet room turned back into a shower over bath a few years ago. In hindsight, it was a bad move and I should have polished my crystal ball and seen that this would be an issue.

Trying to get DS in the bath is like trying to get a 3.5 foot tall cat with opposable thumbs into a bucket or water. Sounds like it too. Thank God my NDN is deaf.